Hot Rods Stay Generator or go Alternator?

Been a long time since I've been on here posting, but hey, that's life. Anywho. Bought a 1960 International B110 pickup, has a good ol' Delco 12v generator on it. Based on testing, it puts out a whopping 2.4v oooooh, ahhhh....

I pulled it apart, cleaned it up, fixed the springs, brushes, made sure everything was nice, clean, and such. Put it together, and tested it again, and......2.6v. oooh, ahh...WTF?

So I'm thinking it's toast. I'd like to keep running a generator, just personal preference. I don't have another to put on the truck to test and see if it's wiring or the voltage regulator.

Should I just say "Fuggit" and go with a 1-wire alternator conversion? I'd rather not, but I'd also like my charging system to work.

Thoughts and comments welcome.

 

Think ease of replacement and availability on a road trip.
Going for Concourse points, well, then hold fast.
At least you got.2 volts for your trouble.

 

Gonna be cheaper and easier to swap to an alternator that actually puts out.
Kinda like dating two women. You know one puts out. Which you gonna take to the picture show?

 

Sounds like the armature is shorted internally.

Considering the intrinsic value of original '60 Internationals, a 'retrofit' alternator would be practical.
Sort of like an old guy getting a new hip. (won't hurt the resale...)

 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^X2

 

If you really like the looks of the old generators, and are willing to live with their downfalls, go for it !
However, if you don't really have to have a generator...no brainer...go for the alternator. No real comparison ...
Let us know what you do !

 

I really don't know why everyone always bags on generators. I've been running one on my Y-block for over 10 years and have never had an issue with it. Granted, I didn't grow up in the era of generators so I've haven't had near as much experience with them as I have alternators (which fail too!) But, if you're worried about being broken down somewhere and not being able to get another generator, you won't get a 1 wire alternator at Autozone either....

 

Newsflash ! AutoZone most likely won't have ANYTHING worth buying. Pray for O'Reilly's, NAPA, any other parts house but AZ !

 

Have ran a generator on the 60 Buick in my avatar since I bought it in 2001. Can't swap it over or I'd a done it already. Just weighing options. People need to calm down. My local AZ is ran by longtime friends, if they can't order it from their people they'll find it for me from other places.

 

if ya had it off did you full feild it to get to work on its own have to do that to all of dads old ih trucks

 

Thought we got smart and purchased a very near new powergen alternator that the PO sold as it was satin black and he decided he wanted chrome. Sweet it was half price. We wanted satin black. Works fine but in reality for our basic highboy all we needed was the old 12v generator. The output seems the same , I think we over thought what we needed. Keep it basic and you can't go wrong. Don't get me wrong powergens are a great product, but do you really need an alternator if your battery is always at full charge?

 

I run two cars on generators and each car has a spare generator in a box in the trunk. I could swap one out in ten minutes and be on my way again, but I've never had to do so.

 

I'm not singling out Auto Zone. My point is that NO brick & mortar parts store is going to have a 1 wire alternator available on the shelf....they are a specialty item only available from dealers. So if you think switching to a 1 wire increases your ability to find parts in an emergency, you're kidding yourself. You'd need to switch to something really modern that's found on billions of modern cars, like off a Taurus or Civic or Camry. And then what about your 1960 Binder distributor or fuel pump or.....? Hence my opinion that if you're gonna drive an old car/truck, you might as well just stick with a generator.

 

I'd rather have a nice old American made generator that's been rebuilt over a cheap chinese piece of junk if at all possible.

 

see that battery over there?...it's 8 years old...the generator is an un-rebuilt 1955 original...no problems

 

If your power consumption is still basically the same as stock (no AC, big stereo or extra bright lights) there's no reason why another used or rebuilt generator wouldn't do the job. I'm not sure what your costs are there, but here in Canada I'd be looking at $150 for a stock generator, $150 for a new single wire Delco alternator (no chrome, plus new mounts and wiring to remove the voltage regulator) or $450 for a Powergen (I'm sure all these prices are higher than what you can find locally). Personally, I'd make sure there was a good relay to work Halogen headlights and go with the Powergen.

 

try flashing the field ( polarize it ) it might have lost its magnetic flux and needs to be recharged up they will do this if it sits over time or they been taken off for repair its quick and easy to do ( search on how to do it here http://www.starautoelectric.com/page25.php ) ,

as for the great alt vs generator debate , if you only running lights and the am radio and stock ignition and motor . stick with the Genny , if your running EFI, have a electric fuel pump or towing a trailer with lights and such then a alternator

 

Try polarizing it first. If that doesn't work have it rebuilt by a local trustworthy rebuilder, or put on an alternator. I would probably keep the generator because it is easier. Either way is good, but if you take off the generator save it in case you or a future owner wants to return it to stock.

 

I am lucky ,an old farmer here has the test and repair stuff for the generators. Sometimes you have to convince him its for a John Deere so he will work on it though.

 

Talk about opening a can of worms, dang you guys.

I pulled it apart, cleaned it up best I know how. Fixed a broken brush spring, which I thought might help because only one brush was touching the commutator. I wire brushed all the crap off every connecty togethery spot. I don't have a growler so I can't do all the big fancy dealy things. I tried a generator test I read online where you jump from D to DF and hit it with 12v on one of the poles, and it spins, just not really fast. Bearings seem ok, checked both ends, no issues. I did try to repolarize it. And according to what I've read, I've done everything right. So, I'm still guessing it's toast. I guess I could pull the one off my Buick and try it on the truck to see if it outputs the same crappy 2.6v or so.

I'm just wanting the SOB to work.

 

with a stock internally regulated mid 70s delco if you run a short jumper wire from the armature terminal to the alternator battery terminal (about the same size as the battery wire) and then to the positive battery terminal (or the horn relay or old gen regulator) that will do the job.
basically that is what the 'one wire' alternators do... but inside.

 

I'd be afraid of having two ruined generators after trying that.

Personally I'd go with either a 10 SI or 12 SI Delco style alternator that takes the 3 wire hookup and be done with it. I've got a 12 SI saved off a 85 Cad Deville for my 48 And hooking them up is pretty simple and fool prood. Good info here http://bob_skelly.home.comcast.net/~bob_skelly/alternator_conversion/wiring_alternator1.html

Around here the parts houses keep 1 wire 10SI's in stock because they get used on farm tractors after the generators crap out. Simple to hook up when the tractor is running a mag or is a diesel. Twice the money as a three wire unit though.

To run a generator is all about how you want it to look when you have the hood open at rod trots. My roadster will get a generator along with fabric covered wires because that is what is period correct for the build as alternators weren't invented yet. A 150 mile one way trip in that car is going to be a realllly loooong trip for that car under it's own power too so reliability isn't a great issue. Plus it will have no radio or accessories to power and probably not have headlights that draw a lot of extra amps.

 

Mr48, that link was quite informative. Thank you

 

I've run my Nomad 24 years and 300,000 miles with generator (with power steering pump attached). So far, have had generator rebuilt once, voltage regulator replaced twice

 

Did you POLARIZE IT? Takes 5 seconds, costs NOTHING and is a normal part of a generator overhaul. Sometimes necessary if a car sits around for a long time too.

 

I've polarized the damn thing 8 ways to Sunday. I made sure. Not totally stupid on this, it's the first thing I tried. Then pulled it apart, then put it together, then REPOLARIZED it, 3x for good measure to make damn sure I'd done it right. Still 2.6v. It's done.

Local starter/generator/alternator guy closed shop several years ago when the city did the stupidest thing they could possibly do and rerouted roads away from businesses. Stu kicked ass, he rebuilt 2 generators for my Buick. One's broke totally, other's on the car.

 

After trying a new regulator and looking into the cost of rebuilding my original flathead generator, I went for a aftermarket 45 amp dynamator ( read alternator) made for English cars and adapted it to fit. Works well for last 6 months. Would have been 1/2 the price to go with a tractor version of same thing if you can get one with enough amps. Probably all made in china. But I'm happy with it so far.

 

My 2 cents worth, the 40 in my avatar now has a powergen alternator after going through 3 regulators, 1 about every 6 weeks or so. I think the issue is the quality of the Chinese parts. There are very few elelctric shops in my area and most of them don't know how to set up or properly rebuild that older stuff. If you can find something that is quality built and someone who knows how to set it up correctly it would be fine. And yes I polarized all the regulators. But as was mentioned earlier if you are out on the road and don't want to chance trying to find replacements or carrying half the weight of your vehicle in replacement parts I would figure a way to convert it. The powergen has been on my car over a year without so much as a glich . But they are pricey and I was trying to achieve a stock look. As was mentioned earlier figure out a way to do a late model 1 wire conversion.

 

Have you tested generator output with the wires disconnected?

That is a simple test. There are two types of systems on different makes of generators.

Wires must be disconnected from generator.

One type, you put voltmeter to the BATT terminal, then momentarily put a hot jumper to the FLD terminal, and quickly look to see if volts are "running wild", meaning double or triple the normal volts.. Only jump it long enough to see a reading at 1200 to 1500 rpm.

The other system, you need to jump the FLD with a jumper to ground.

This test will tell if the generator is dead.

Find out which system you have. Might be a youtube video on which brands use a hot or a ground jumper.

 

O.K., I have a 1 wire on my F100 now. My pal Lester bought a wrecked police car (3rd generation 350) and used the engine in his 'A' Coupe, giving me the 100 amp alternator.
Internal regulator, I hooked it up with the 2-wire and crossover, worked perfect.
Another bud that has an electrical shop here said, "Oh, you just HAVE to convert that to 1 wire!"
So I disassembled the alternator, and installed the 1 wire regulator. Now I have to 'purge' it to charge, after starting warm it a little, then goose it to 24 RPM...then the volt meter indicates it's charging.
I'm going back to the '3 wire'. Hate that unnecessary racing the engine every time I light it.